It is relatively simple to open a student account, but there are certain restrictions, terms and conditions to consider. You may need to prove your age and nationality; you may also wish to open more than one account to take advantage of the different benefits offered by individual account providers.
Terms and Conditions: Many student accounts will have an age limit, meaning that they are exclusively available to people under a certain age, for example twenty-five years old. However, if you are a mature student with proof of the educational course you aim to pursue, most banking providers will allow you to open a student account regardless of your age. Certain credit facilities, such as a credit card or an overdraft will be available only to students over eighteen years of age. Many account providers will require proof of your proposed educational course and an indication of the anticipated duration of your studies. There are some student accounts which are available only to Australian residents, and you may be required to give proof of your nationality. However, international students are able to open specialised student bank accounts with Australian providers, enabling them to benefit from the usual special offers.
Multiple Accounts: You are usually allowed to open and operate more than one student account with different banking providers. This enables you to benefit from the advantages of more than one account, for example, you may wish to profit from the interest-free overdraft offered on one account and the free international cash withdrawals offered by another. However, some banks and building societies will check to see whether you have a range of bank accounts and may choose to refuse you another account if they consider that you will get into financial difficulties, or be unable to manage all these accounts. You should also consider that if you are on a limited budget, it may be an unwise temptation to open several accounts each with an overdraft facility: you may find it easier to get into debt.
